In Another Time
by WindAndWaterAlchemist
Summary: A glitch in the Well takes Kagome back even further; to a time when InuYasha is not yet born, Sesshoumaru is furious at his father's love of a human, and the Well is not yet dug, preventing her return! This fic is just me playing around with an idea...
1. Chapter 1

**AN: In this story, I made Sesshoumaru younger than I've usually heard of him as being (like 700-900 years old!). In this, he's about a hundred years older than InuYasha, and since I'm portraying InuYasha as being two hundred at the time of Naraku, then Sesshoumaru would only be three hundred-ish then, but about an hundred for much of this story. **

Sesshoumaru swept down the halls of the castle like a punishing storm from heaven, his eyes sending servants scurrying out of his way.

The great Inu lord of the West glanced up when his son entered the room.

"Sesshoumaru! Welcome home…it has been some time since we've seen you."

Sesshoumaru merely stood still, his fists clenching and unclenching, his jaw tight and his golden eyes burning.

"How _dare _you?"

The older Inu rose from his desk and moved to stand before Sesshoumaru.

"How dare I what? What have I done to bring such anger to your eyes?"

"Can you possibly be so foolish as to not understand? How could you do something so shameful? I care not if you wish to have a human whore in your bed…but to wed her, while your true mate still lives…and worse, to impregnate her…how could you bring such humiliation upon our family?"

"Sesshoumaru, don't talk nonsense. Your mother is my mate in the Inu sense. I was free to take a wife separately, many demons do. And besides…can't you understand? I _love _Izayoi."

"Love and marriage are human concepts, designed only to keep track of whose child is whose, not that it often works. You have fallen into a pit of stupidity. Do as you please, but do not expect me to acknowledge your bastard pup as my sibling. I will not darken your door again until your have passed on and the time has come to claim my inheritance. When that time comes, I will kill the half-breed. _Farewell_, Father."

"Sesshoumaru, don't be this way. My child will be your half sibling. It is your duty to care for him or her. I have done nothing wrong in loving a human. The only one I've wronged is myself, for the sorrow that will be mine when her brief, mortal life ends."

"Somewhere along the line, you've exchanged wisdom for sentimentality. If you come to your senses and set the woman aside, I will return. Otherwise, my previous word still stands. I will kill hanyou one day."

He left without another word, ignoring the tears in his father's eyes.


	2. Chapter 2

Kagome waved to Sota, who had come to bid her farewell.

"I'll come back when I get the chance! See ya!"

"Okay, sis. Tell Big Brother InuYasha I said hi!"

"I will. Bye!"

Kagome bounced down the steps into the shrine shed. She felt light; she'd left her big yellow bag with InuYasha, since this was a very short trip home and she didn't intend to bring anything back with her. In the shed, she launched over the Well's edge with an ease borne of having done it innumerable times.

The magic flow was familiar and normal, for the most part. Briefly, she thought she felt something strange; a jolt or twinge in the energy of the Well; but it passed, and she put it from her mind.

Her school shoes touched dirt, and she smiled. She glanced up and was somewhat surprised that InuYasha was not peering over the edge, waiting for her impatiently as was the norm; he would sit there waiting, and as soon as she was a minute later than she'd said she'd be, he'd come to get her. Why wasn't he here this time? Perhaps the village had been attacked by a demon, or the group had heard rumors of a Jewel Shard and they'd all left for the moment?

She scrambled up the rough stone wall, muttering irritably when she scuffed her shoes and broke a nail. It was easier when InuYasha was there to help her up.

The forest looked…different, somehow…clearer, brighter…were there fewer trees? Perhaps InuYasha had cut down some in his boredom; the villagers could always use wood for their fires or repairing and building homes.

She walked towards the village, fighting down the odd sensation of something being severely out of place. She was looking at her feet, kicking pebbles idly, so it was not until she reached the very edge of the woods and looked up that she realized that the nagging feeling was far more than a simple sensation.

The village was _gone_.

No…it wasn't so much that it was gone…as that there was simply nothing there, as though there never had been a village here. No ruins, no sign of human life. Trees dotted the field. The hill up which the stairs of the shrine should go up was empty, touched with shrubs and flowers.

"What on earth is going on?!"

She spoke the shocked question aloud…nearly screamed it, actually. A rabbit started and bounded away at the sound of her voice. A crow in one of the trees tilted its head and squawked curiously. No voice responded. Frightened, Kagome ran back to the grove. She would go back to her time and wait for InuYasha to show up. Surely this was just some sort of glitch. Everything would be alright…

Except, when she got back to the grove…the Well was nowhere to be seen.


	3. Chapter 3

Kagome huddled in the back of the cave, terrified. This was Onigumo's Cave, but she'd come to understand that Onigumo had never been here, not yet. The Well had not been dug, the village had not been built. Onigumo was probably not even born. Somehow, if her theory was right, she had been taken farther back in the past, further than five hundred years, though how much further, she could not guess.

Frightened, unable to return home, and with night coming, she had retreated to the one place that still seemed the same. How odd, knowing what would come to pass in this cave one day, but not able to do anything to prevent it.

A wolf howled somewhere, and Kagome hugged herself tighter. She wondered; was Koga born yet? InuYasha? Could she find someone she knew, someone who could help her? How far back was she? Was Midoriko alive? She was glad she'd left her Jewel Shards with InuYasha when she went home; having them with her in a time before the Jewel was created might have caused some sort of problem with the space time continuum, or whatever it was called…

Suddenly, she was aware of something coming towards the cave. She could sense a demonic aura, not a particularly strong one, but having left her bag and bow with InuYasha, she would be helpless if the demon intended to hurt her. Twigs snapped, and there was a dull thud with each step the creature took. It was big. Feeling panicked, Kagome curled even further back into the shadows of the cave, hoping desperately that the thing would not find her, yet knowing that it probably already had.

A huge, ugly green face suddenly pressed against the opening of the cave, blocking out the moonlight that had begun filtering over the trees and into the darkness of the cavern. However, instead of a hungry or evil demon, the creature looked terrified, and seemed desperate to push itself inside the opening, which was far too small for its large body. It didn't even seem aware of her. Something seemed to catch its attention, and it turned, speaking in a pleading, frantic voice.

"No, please! I'm sorry, I'm sorry! Don't kill me!"

A green ribbon of light suddenly flashed through the demon, and blood sprayed everywhere. That green light was so familiar. Delighted at the prospect of seeing _anyone _she knew, forgetting the danger he might pose, she rushed forward, crawling through the blood at the opening, and burst out into the night, gasping.

"Sesshoumaru!"

………

Sesshoumaru eyed the dead demon at the cave entrance, satisfied. He was aware that there was a human in the cave, but not particularly interested. He turned to walk away. Last time he'd accidentally saved a human, the fellow had hung around and babbled praises at him so persistently that he'd been very much tempted to kill the mortal himself. The only thing that had stopped him had been Father's wishes. He felt an unwelcome pang of sorrow at the thought. He had always strived to please his father, and yet the older Inu apparently held no such regard for his son. How could Father stoop so low?

He'd taken only three steps before a female voice gasped out his name.

"Sesshoumaru!"

He turned, startled. To the best of his knowledge, no human woman had cause to know his name, other than that…that _harlot_ his father had taken in. He snarled mentally at the thought of her, but forced his attention upon the creature standing before him.

She was strange enough to make him blink, eyes widening slightly. She seemed to be wearing two garments; the upper half very oddly designed, but properly high necked and long sleeved. It was the bottom garment that was shocking. All but the very tops of her legs were visible, long and lean, sticking out from a strange, patterned green swatch of cloth. She wore odd stockings of some sort, and strange boots. In all his travels and interactions with different types of people, he'd never seen an outfit like that. Even prostitutes tended to dress more modestly.

Her utter strangeness did not end with her clothing. While most human girls of her age would be screaming in terror about seeing that stupid demon killed, she seemed completely unaware or uncaring of the blood smeared down her garments from when she'd crawled out of the cave through the mess. Her hair was unbound and somewhat wild.

The most intensely absurd, strange thing about her was the enormous smile on her face and the bright light in her eyes, as if she'd just found a long lost best friend. _And she'd called him by name! _

"Who are you? How is it that you know me?"

Understanding passed over her face, and the somewhat stupid smile faded.

"Oh…I'm sorry…I just…Of course, you couldn't know me."

"I have never seen you before, and your scent is unfamiliar, yet you know my name. Explain immediately, woman."

"I can…but I somehow doubt you'll believe me…"

"Speak the truth. I will decide for myself what I believe."

"Well…it's complicated…I…I come from the future…more than five hundred years into the future. There was a Well, in my time, and I was pulled through it by a demon, into a time closer to this. You were there…You tried to kill me a couple times, actually…"

He eyed her skeptically. The story sounded like so much nonsense, to be certain, but her odd clothing and the fact that she knew his name prompted him to let her continue.

He remained silent.

………

Kagome took the time to look at Sesshoumaru while she spoke. His hair was shorter, though not a great deal, and braided down his back; she'd seen it when he started to walk away before she called him. The clothing he wore was essentially identical to what he wore in the time she normally saw him in, except that the pattern on his shoulders and the ends of his sleeves was a dark color…she couldn't make out in the moonlight whether it was black or dark blue…and the sash he wore was a vivid red with black marks, instead of yellow with blue.

He was silent when she finished talking. His eyes frightened her. She'd known him to be cold, but in the time she knew him in, he'd been softening. Now, his eyes were like golden ice. He seemed even more stiff and regulated than when she'd first met him…the years must have eased his strictness. Still…he looked…young. Not as young as the InuYasha she knew looked, but not much older. While she normally pegged him as being in his mid or late twenties physically (heaven knew how old he really was), he looked only nineteen or so now.

He crossed his arms and glared at her, apparently expecting her to keep talking, and she suddenly was struck by the strange defiance, the anger, and something not unlike sorrow, that showed in his posture, his eyes, his expression. He reminded her of the older boys in school when they went through a rebellious stage, sullen and almost sulking, furious and yet secretly wishing to be comforted.

Pulling her straying thoughts together, she spoke.

"I…I can prove I'm telling the truth, maybe. I know things about you that I wouldn't know if I weren't being honest. Most importantly, you have a hanyou half-brother who you hate. Unless I've come back too far…"

"Half-brother, huh? Father's human bed toy is with child, there is no way of telling whether the abomination is male or female. Yet you are certainly correct about one thing; whether it be male or female, I will hate it. When the time comes, I will kill it."

She thought of telling him that he wouldn't, that with time, he would slowly, ever so slowly, begin to soften towards the hanyou. However, she decided it was best not to risk changing the future by allowing Sesshoumaru to know it. Instead, she sought other facts.

"You admire and look up to your father, but at the same time, you are angered by his taking a human wife."

He'd been staring at her legs; not lustfully, but rather as if he were thouroughly puzzled by them. When she spoke of his feelings for his father, however, his head jerked up, and he half snarled.

"How dare you presume to tell me how I feel?!"

"I don't know how you feel now…but, from conversations in the future…mostly you going on angry rants at your brother, actually…I've picked up some of what you've felt."

"How old is my father's bastard in that time?"

"I think he's about two hundred years old, why?"

"I do not believe this tale. Obviously, you have discovered some things about my family from another source. There is no possible way I would have allowed the hanyou creature to live that long. I do not intend to kill him while he is a child; my honor will not allow it. But certainly I will have killed him before he reaches that age."

"I don't know why you didn't, but he's still alive in that time. I think a lot of things distracted you." She could tell him about his father's death, about the war with the Panther Tribe, about InuYasha being sealed by Kikyo…but she forced herself not to. "Why do you hate him? He's not even born now…it's not his fault his parents made him."

He turned away. She watched the long braid down his back swish and tried to decide whether she liked it better this way or down. He was hot either way, she thought with a mental giggle.

"I believe your story. I probably shouldn't…but if I find you have lied, I'll kill you, so it hardly matters one way or the other. It occurs to me that your being here might affect the future in some adverse way. Perhaps then, it is best that I send you back without having questioned you too thoroughly. Though, even in the era two hundred years from now, you are still out of place. Does it not trouble you, the idea that you might make some mistake which would change the future you were born in?"

"I guess…but, you said you'll send me back? How? The Well hasn't been dug in this time…it's not there. I have no way back."

He gave her a strange look, like he couldn't believe she would question anything he said.

"When I set out to do something, I do it. I am setting out to be rid of you. And I will be, one way or another."

The hatred in his eyes frightened her. Did he mean to kill her, just because she knew things about him that would one day be fairly common knowledge? What would happen if he did kill her? InuYasha would go to her time, looking for her…her mother would say she'd already gone through the Well…InuYasha would rush back and try to find her scent, increasingly afraid…desperate. He would never find her. Would an entire alternate timeline begin with her death? How would it change the future? Would she never be born in her time? What would happen to the Sacred Jewel if it were not reborn in her body? The entire thought was confusing…So she decided to cooperate with Sesshoumaru, and hope that he really could find a way to send her home…she must be careful not to arouse his temper any more than she already had.

She must be careful, very, very careful.


	4. Chapter 4

Sesshoumaru breathed air out through his nose, trying unsuccessfully to clear away the obnoxious scent of the human and the demon's blood on her. In truth, she didn't really smell that bad…she smelled _clean_, unlike all the common unwashed human peasants he normally encountered. If regular bathing had become the norm in the time she was from, then that era was certainly something to look forward to. There was a light, herbal and flowery scent around her. So it was not the scent of her in particular that irritated him; it was the human smell, the scent of mortality. Humans always bore just the tiniest hint of decay in their smell; for every human spent their whole life gradually dying.

She kept up with him surprisingly well. Certainly he could have gone a lot faster by flying, but he enjoyed walking, and had been planning to even before he found her. He walked fairly quickly, however, and had been expecting her to whine or slow him down. Instead, she walked just slightly behind him, silent and resolute. It was almost as if…as if she knew what he would expect from her, as if she had traveled with a demon before.

Suddenly, he began putting things together. She'd said that, in the future, he'd tried to kill her. She knew he had a half-sibling whom he intended to kill. She'd spoken of him going on "angry rants" at said sibling. There was a sort of affection in her tone when she mentioned the abomination. And the other smell on her, the strange one that he had not been able to identify, a strange muddle of human and demon scent that seemed to come from one source, and was not at all dissimilar to his own scent, to the scent of his father…the scent of the hanyou!

Her spun on his heel and she nearly walked straight into him. She skidded to a halt mere inches away and looked up into his angry face with fear slowly creeping into her face and scent.

"You are a whore…lover to the hanyou who will be my enemy."

Suddenly, anger flashed in her eyes, and she stood up on tiptoes, poking him in the chest with one finger, glaring darkly.

"How dare you call me that?! You have much better language in the time I knew you! I'm his friend, nothing more! I've never even kissed him, you jerk! The only reason I smell like him is that he makes me ride on his back because he's too impatient to wait up for me! So don't go jumping to stupid conclusions, baka!"

He stood completely still, utterly shocked. Never in his hundred years of life had anyone even come close to speaking to him with such gall. Also, aside from his parents and his personal servants, no one had ever invaded his space in such a manner. He ought to cut her into ribbons with his claws this second, but somehow, he found himself thoroughly amused by her. He'd been in a terrible mood ever since leaving his father's palace a week ago, and at this point, anything that could amuse him was worth keeping alive. He didn't realize he was smirking until her expression suddenly darkened even further.

"What are you smiling about?! Don't laugh at me! Really, you think you're so tough! I'm a miko, you know! I shoot purifying arrows! I'm dangerous, even to you!"

……..

Kagome very nearly gasped when Sesshoumaru crossed his arms over his chest, tilted his head, and _smiled_. Not the mocking smirk of a moment ago…the smirk that was so familiar, that she'd so often seen when he mocked InuYasha…but a full, laughing smile. Laughing at her expense, of course, but suddenly she didn't care, because that smile was breathtaking. He'd suddenly been transformed from an angry, cold, uptight snob into a mischeivious, boyish, and utterly gorgeous creature.

"You think you could do me harm, little miko?"

There was a challenge in his voice, and she seriously considered demanding a bow and arrows, so that she could prove herself to him. Suddenly, however, a memory of clawed fingers easily catching a whizzing arrow, burning it away with acid as if it were nothing, came back to her. Perhaps it was best not try anything.

"I could if I wanted to! But I'm not going to; I need your help to get back to where I'm supposed to be!"

"Ah, of course. It is as good an excuse as any to avoid a fight with me, ne?"

He was…teasing her?! She was feeling a bit flustered…bedazzled. She'd always found Sesshoumaru attractive…what woman in their right mind wouldn't?!...but in general, it had been a sort of passing perception of his beauty, his grace, the intense masculinity behind the nearly feminine features. But that smile, fangs showing, dangerous and yet brilliant…the way he'd called her "little miko" in an amused way as if he found her anger somehow endearing…the teasing in his voice now…these things were all so attractive, so unlike the Sesshoumaru in the future.

She felt guilty, in a way. InuYasha and her family were probably already becoming frantic at this point, and here she was drooling over a younger Sesshoumaru. But…InuYasha had chosen Kikyo. Kagome had returned to his side anyway, loving him, but somehow knowing that it would be a very long time, if ever, before he could move on. Then, she'd found herself drifting from him. She loved him, as a friend…her best friend. But she wasn't ready to wait for something that might never come. And Sesshoumaru was positively stunning.

"What are you staring at, miko? Have you never seen fangs before?"

She scrambled for a retort.

"It's not that. You have something in your teeth."

He snorted.

"Ridiculous." Well, that was familiar, at least. Then he smiled again. "Your nerve is both appalling and delightful."

Was that a compliment? She decided to take it as one. How many people could say that they'd been complimented by coldhearted Lord Sesshoumaru? They could probably be counted on one hand… He turned and began walking again.

"So, um…where are we going anyway?"

"Father's circle of friends includes a number of senile old men who have surprising amounts of knowledge stored amongst their drivel. One of their number may be able to assist us."

"Is Totosai one of them?"

"You know Totosai? I'm surprised. The old fool is most irritating. I wouldn't have thought I'd allow him to live another two hundred years."

She fell silent. What could she say? Totosai had a huge part yet to play…the making of Tessaiga and Tenseiga, the brother swords…

"We have been walking long, and you have kept up well. It is midnight. You may sleep, if you are weary."

She hadn't realized it had been so long, but suddenly, she was exhausted.

"You won't leave me, will you? I don't have anyone else to help me…"

"I will remain."

She noticed that they were standing in a small glade. There was a stream, and the sound of the water made her suddenly aware of one of nature's more basic calls…a rather loud call, actually. She glanced nervously at Sesshoumaru. He actually rolled his eyes at her.

"Go into the woods a little ways, I would not dream of following. I will ensure nothing harms you."

"H-how did you…?!"

"You're pressing your legs together. It's rather obvious, in that immodest getup."

His wry tone was somehow delightful. She slipped into the woods and did what needed to be done. When she returned, Sesshoumaru was sitting on a large rock at one side of the glade, staring pensively up into the sky. His moods seemed so changeable, so unstable. He struck her as being so young, like a teenager, precariously balanced between sullen and happy. Just how old _was _he anyway? Was it possible that, in demon terms, he really was a teenager?

"The ground here is cushioned with moss and grass. A futon would be more comfortable, certainly, but there are worse places to sleep. It is not a chill night; you will do well enough even without blankets."

"Alright." If it had been InuYasha, she would have whined and complained, demanded he give her his haori to use as a blanket…but she was not completely without a sense of self-preservation, and she'd risked enough by yelling at Sesshoumaru earlier. It hadn't turned out badly, in fact, he seemed amused and almost pleased by her insolence…but she thought it unwise to press her luck further tonight. "Arigato, Sesshoumaru, for being willing to help me."

He seemed surprised by that, tilted his head curiously. For a moment, he seemed genuinely pleased, as though being thanked was a rare thing…but then he fixed his face into a blank mask and spoke coolly.

"I'm only doing it because I do not want you here."

He was like InuYasha when she'd first met him, she thought. Proud and stubborn, unwilling to be friendly…but all in all…not a bad guy.


	5. Chapter 5

**AN: I was too lazy while writing this chapter to go online looking for valid Japanese names, so I just stuck some stuff together an' came up with Ryumaru. If this is a huge problem for anybody, then please give me a better suggestion, and I'll try and replace it. Thanks. **

**I'm not entirely certain when exactly I've set this in the manga/anime timeline…somewhere after the whole "Onigumo's Heart" fiasco, InuYasha choosing Kikyo and Kagome choosing to come back anyway, etc…**

She was spinning, her arms held far out from her body, laughing. He would never understand females, let alone human ones. Ridiculous creatures.

Her movements made her lower garment…what little there was of it…swirl up even higher. Again, he found himself staring at her legs with a sense of idle curiosity. She did not seem like an immoral woman…strange, undoubtedly, but not immodest. Why then did she dress like that? Was it the norm in her time for young women to show so much of their bodies? How odd. He thought it must be rather unfair to the young women who did not have such attractive bodies. This era allowed those with imperfections to hide them beneath layers of clothing. Apparently, in the miko's time, there was no such mercy.

The miko Kagome had very nice legs: long, lean, made somewhat muscular from hours of walking, but not enough to detract from their femininity. They were very smooth, as if she had taken a razor to the skin. He'd heard of such things, but found them completely irrelevant to anything important in his life. Still, the smoothness and lack of hair was most flattering.

He stared because he was curious, not because he was particularly attracted to her. Truthfully, he'd never seen so much of a female's body before. Demons aged slowly, and though he was an hundred years old, it had not been until twenty years ago that he fully matured physically. Twenty years felt like little more than months to him, and he did not feel strange for having never bedded a woman. It wasn't that he did not think it would be pleasant, or that he did not desire women, but he simply felt that there were more important things to do than spend all day ogling demonesses and all night bedding them like his peers. Anything his body needed, he could deal with himself, swiftly and without the complications of another's emotions to bog him down. The miko from the future was very appealing, but certainly not enough to wring any strong desire from his cold blood. Still, as far as humans went, she was the most interesting, both physically and otherwise, that he had yet to meet.

She turned suddenly and became aware of his eyes on her, undoubtedly realizing how silly she looked, and she blushed brightly. It was amusing, the flustered way she pulled herself together and tucked away the childish girl who had a moment ago been spinning in pointless circles, trading that character with something at least somewhat more mature. He wondered how old she was. Fifteen or sixteen years of age, probably. Had she been born in this era, she would as likely as not have already been wed, might even be a mother. It would seem that, in the time she came from, girls were allowed more time to be children.

He'd left to go hunt about a half an hour ago, telling her that, unless she liked raw meat, she should start a fire. He'd returned only about five minutes ago to find, surprisingly enough, a roaring fire, water boiling in the small pot he carried for gathering water, and a pretty human girl spinning in circles, laughing at the bright sky. Now that she'd noticed him, he walked down the hill and handed the two rabbits he'd brought back to her.

"Do you know how to clean and cook them?"

"Yes. Do you want to eat too?"

He smirked. The taste of hot blood still tainted his lips.

"I thought you knew everything about me, little miko? Do you think I eat like a human?"

She shrugged.

"You know, I've never quite figured that out. Inu-…that is, your half-brother eats like a human…he loves food from my time…but I would have expected he'd eat raw meat or something. Must just be that he's a half-demon. I'm guessing you just hunt things and eat them fresh, right? What I'd like to know if how you keep your clothes so clean when you're eating something all bloody."

He was a bit surprised by her calmness on the subject. Wouldn't most human girls find such things very repulsive?

"I hunt and eat in the form of a dog."

"Oh? But your dog form is gigantic! How do you hunt when the sound of you coming probably chases animals off from miles away?"

Now this was interesting. What occasion had she had, in the future, to see him in his largest form? Had that been one of the times she'd mentioned when he'd tried to kill her? And if so, how on earth had she escaped? If she thought he was gigantic in largest form, she ought to see Father…sadness and anger welled up, and he pushed the thought away. Father was not worthy even of his anger, let alone his sorrow.

"I am able to take the form of a dog no larger than those kept by the humans. It is that form in which I hunt."

He pulled a knife from his boot and gave it to her to clean the rabbits with. She set about the job with skill that suggested she was very used to campfire cooking. He found himself wanting to ask her more about the future. Why did she travel with his half-brother? What was the purpose of their travels? How was it that she'd said he'd tried to kill her, more than once even, and he had not succeeded? And what of the odd way she kept doing a double take every time he used his left hand, and then getting a strange smile on her face and shaking her head, as if laughing at herself? It was almost as if…she did not expect that hand to be there. It was a rather disquieting thought.

She cooked the meat in strips laid over the fire, and made some sort of tea for herself using herbs she'd gathered. She poured it into the single cup he kept with the pot, and offered it to him first. She knew he wouldn't want to drink from something a human had drunk from. Clever girl. He sipped carefully out of curiosity, expecting an unpleasant medicinal flavor. Instead, he was surprised to find that she had somehow made the tea slightly sweet. Obviously she truly was a miko, to have such knowledge of which plants were good for such things.

"So, who exactly are we going to see?"

"A demon named Ryumaru. He knows a great deal about magic, and he builds jars, not unlike your Well, which eat the bones of dead demons and draw in their power. I would not be surprised to discover that he is the one who will eventually dig the Well. He favors humans, and I can very easily imagine him making the Well as a place for humans to dispose of evil youkai. It will take another week to get there at this speed, however."

"Um…couldn't we go on your cloud?"

"Cloud?"

"Yeah, I saw you take your vassal on it once, that flying cloud thing."

"Well, I suppose it is good to know I will learn how to do that one day. At the moment, I am capable of flying, but only my own body. Father and Mother are both able to do what you have spoken of, but I do not yet have enough skill."

"Oh, I see. Well…do you want to go without me? You could maybe go talk to him and then come back. It's not that I mind going, I'm used to traveling like this. But if it irritates you, having me slow you down…"

"It does not trouble me. I enjoy walking, and I have nothing pressing to do at the moment. If that changes between now and when we arrive, I will do as you suggest. For the moment, we will continue as we are."

She looked relieved. Undoubtedly the idea of staying alone and defenseless while he went to find the demon was frightening to her.

It was odd…the more he watched this strange creature, the more he felt curious about Izayoi. Was she this brave, this insolent, this…interesting? He'd only seen her once, from a distance; dressed in layers of finery and walking around like a lady with ten maids. No, he decided, Izayoi was undoubtedly one of the obnoxious, brainless, spineless humans. Father was an idiot. If he _must _insist upon enjoying the company of humans, couldn't he have found a woman like this Kagome, with the flashing brown eyes and nerve of a demoness? Suddenly, realizing just what he was thinking, he shook his head sharply once and turned his attention back to the miko.

She was rinsing the pot and cup in the stream, folded back on her legs in a clever way which kept her short garment from completely exposing her. He noted that the soles of her boots were nearly worn through. She would probably begin getting blisters soon. It figured. She'd been traveling with the hanyou monstrosity in the future; a hanyou would not take good care of his companion, would not notice that she needed new footwear. Her clothing was a wreck too, after she'd come through the blood of the demon he'd killed two nights ago, when they met. She's asked him to give her some privacy the first night, so that she could strip and try to wash them, but though the worst of the blood had come out, there was still a large dark stain down her front. He decided idly that he ought to send her into the next human village to buy proper clothing, especially as there was no telling just how long it would be before she was able to get home.

………


	6. Chapter 6

He was watching her. It made her uncomfortable. She was extra careful to sit back on her heels so that her skirt didn't slip up further. She glanced back out of the corner of her eye and saw Sesshoumaru shake his head once, as if to clear it. What thoughts brought such a reaction from him? Was he…lusting after her? The thought wrung a strange flutter of giddiness from her…but no, she didn't think he really was. He watched her like someone would an animal they had never before seen; curious about its behavior and way of living. Though, she had thought she'd seen at least the tiniest glimmer of attraction in his eyes, when she'd stopped spinning and turned to face him. He'd told her he was an hundred years old…very young, for a demon, perhaps not even fully adult. Knowing that, she was actually quite surprised that he didn't seem to want her. Wasn't it a prerequisite for teenage boys and their demon equivalents to be obsessed with sex? Then again, Sesshoumaru wasn't the kind of guy to be ruled by his body.

He stood up and handed her the bag. She'd found it somehow odd that he should actually be carrying a bag of supplies; it seemed as though he would think it beneath him to carry anything; yet he had the pot, the cup, and some assorted other items he might need with him in the bag. She put the dishes back in and stood, brushing grass from her skirt.

"When we next pass by a human village, you will go and purchase some more suitable clothing."

"Wha- but I don't have anything to pay with!"

"I will give you something to trade. You cannot continue wearing that bloodstained clothing. Besides, the odd design and the amount of your body it shows make your outfit very conspicuous here. Anyone who sees you may be tempted to…accost you. You look as though you are for sale."

She blushed brightly. At least he hadn't said it outright, hadn't called her whore again. But still, it was embarrassing. In the time, two hundred years from now, where she traveled with InuYasha, was that how people saw her? No wonder she got so many strange looks. But why hadn't someone mentioned it before? Miroku was probably taking advantage of her, and InuYasha was clueless…but couldn't Sango have mentioned how strange she looked? She was going to do a lot of yelling if she ever got back.

"Um…okay, I'll get new clothes…but I won't be able to pay you back or anything…"

"Perhaps, in the future, you will find some way to reward me."

She blushed again. Did he even realize that that had sounded suggestive?

He was eyeing her up and down in a considering way, as though trying to decide something.

"Hm. A kimono and sandals would slow your walking down. There are benefits to those strange boots and that short garment. Perhaps…hm…yes, I think we will dress you as a miko. Their outfits allow for a good deal of movement, and you _are _a miko. Go to the shrine in the next village and show them your power, request the clothing so that you may continue on your journey of killing demons or some such nonsense. Though…explaining why a priestess is wearing such clothing could be complicated. There's a village about a mile away. Take off your clothes."

"What?!?!"

"Calm down."

How was she supposed to calm down, when he was untying his armor and fur (she was half surprised to find it actually came off, she'd thought it might be part of him), then peeling off his outer haori? She fought to keep from gawking when he took off the last layer and stood bare from the waist up. He was broader than he looked when dressed, all muscular and…she was suddenly aware of how utterly stupid she must look, standing there with her face all red and her mouth half open. He was smiling again, the breathtaking grin even more devastating while he wasn't wearing a shirt. He was laughing at her, and even then, she could hardly pull herself together.

He handed his lower haori to her and then slipped back into the upper one, refastening his fur and armor.

"Now, undress, and wrap yourself up in that. It's long enough that it'll cover more than even the outfit you're wearing now. When we get to the village, tell the shrine keeper that you are a wondering miko who was attacked by a demon and, having lost your weapon, were nearly violated. You were rescued by a kind samurai who happened by, and he gave you this to cover yourself, but you need new clothing. That should do it. Ask for a bow and arrows as well."

She was still flustered. She's seen InuYasha naked before, and the entirety of him wasn't near as attractive as just Sesshoumaru's chest. She'd never seen such an attractive man, even in those stupid calendars of male models her friends always bought each year. It didn't make sense. Sesshoumaru was only half the age the InuYasha was in the time she knew him. Yet InuYasha looked more her age, and was skinny and scrawny. Sesshoumaru looked near twenty, and his body was so well developed. Was the difference only in that he was full demon, while InuYasha was half?

"Is something the matter, miko?"

She looked up into his knowing smirk and blushed for what must have been the twentieth time in the last five minutes.

"Um…would you turn around so I can undress?"

He turned, still smirking. She scurried out of her shirt and skirt, leaving her underwear and bra, and then wadded the bloody clothing up. She stuck her hands through the long sleeves of his haori and wrapped it tightly around her.

"Okay, I'm covered."

………

Sesshoumaru let his smirk fall when he turned away from her. Her scent had spiked a great deal, and it was surprisingly alluring. He would have thought that the scent of a human female's lust would be repulsive. He was surprised and not a little angry at the way his body and instincts reacted to it, as if she were a suitable bedmate. He pushed the reaction down, telling himself that maybe it was time to find a mistress. There were plenty of suitable demonesses in Mother's court.

"Okay, I'm covered."

He turned back around and barely managed to keep from gasping. Her scent was, if he was brutally honest with himself, completely delicious. But seeing her wrapped up in his clothing, naked or nearly so beneath it, was what really affected him. His scent would be on her…it was like a mark of possession. He inwardly cursed instinct, cursed the part of him that was little more than a wild animal, the part that demanded that anything with his scent on it was either his, or should be.

Until this moment, he'd noted her beauty with indifference, or near indifference, at least. Now, he was tainted by a personal awareness of her…by _lust_. It made him angry. Fate, or Kami, or whatever higher power there was in the universe, had obviously set out to torment him; to make him seem hypocritical. Just over a week had passed since he'd stormed out of his father's palace with the intent of never returning, all because Father "loved" a human woman. As far as Sesshoumaru was concerned, love was just a glorified form of lust. And here he was, lusting after a human. The irony was exceedingly irritating.

"Sesshoumaru?"

He turned from her again. She'd stepped fairly close, and with the movement of turning, he felt the end of his braid brush across her body. He started walking, cursing his hands for envying his hair.

"Let's go."


	7. Chapter 7

"Doesn't this look strange? Not that any humans are too likely to come across us, but any demons who see us go by must be really confused. A powerful demon and a miko traveling together…"

"Hn."

Kagome tilted her head, watching Sesshoumaru's braid swish as he walked ahead of her. The movement was almost hypnotizing. Left, right. Left, right.

He'd been very quiet the last couple of days, since the day she'd gotten her miko clothing. She'd had a fanciful moment of wondering if maybe he missed the sight of her legs, but knew it was just so much nonsense. Nearly everything she said was answered with that one little syllable. "Hn." What was that even supposed to mean? It was so noncommittal. Not agreement, not disagreement, not any kind of interest. It was just a way of telling her he could hear her. And it was getting on her nerves. She never would have expected him to turn out so similar to InuYasha, in some ways. This was like those all too familiar moments when InuYasha would refuse to meet her eyes, when he could not look at her. And yet somehow, she didn't have the nerve to grab Sesshoumaru by that long braid and _force _him to face her, so instead, she endured the quiet and made one sided conversation.

He stopped. She didn't know how he did it, but somehow, he slowed down gradually, so smoothly she didn't even notice, and she subconsciously adjusted her pace, so when he stopped completely, she didn't get surprised and run into him. Leave it to Sesshoumaru to make stopping an art form.

"What is it?"

"There's a demon coming. It means to attack, I believe. I'll deal with it, but it is best you have your bow ready, in case it gets around me somehow or has a companion."

She took her bow from where it was strapped at her back and held an arrow at the ready, watching him. His entire being seemed to shift, tensing lightly, claws extending and flexing, his body bent slightly towards the direction which she could now here something coming from. Suddenly, there was a whooshing sound, and something struck her. She felt claws and teeth latch onto her lower leg. Pain rushed through her, and she tried to realign her focus, grabbing the arrow and stabbing downwards. She saw the flash of white when Sesshoumaru moved, and then the thing clutching her leg went slack with a growling moan.

She glanced down and saw that it was a sort of large cat, now very dead; her arrow in its head and its body made into a gory mess by Sesshoumaru's claws. Her head was spinning, and her leg felt numb, she noted that the left leg of her miko hakama was torn badly, and drenched in blood. The world was going fuzzy.

The last thing she saw was Sesshoumaru rolling his eyes as she fainted.

………

Sesshoumaru was suddenly remembering very clearly why humans were more of a liability than prospectively useful partners. Not that it had been the girl's fault. Even he hadn't expected the cat to be so low to the ground, and so quick. Considering the circumstances, Kagome had done very well; she'd pulled together the strength and concentration to stab the demon through the head with her arrow. Not bad at all…but still…if his companion had been a demon, he wouldn't have to worry about injuries like this.

He ripped off the leg of her hakama from the knee down and winced. She was bleeding to death, and the cat's claws and fangs had been poisoned as well. There were eight long, deep claw gashes, and a good set of fang marks. How inconvenient. Still, he had little choice in the matter; letting her die would be unwise, considering the whole time travel nonsense. There was a hot spring nearby, he could smell the steam. Easily, he lifted the girl and leapt twice, landing him in the small grove where the spring was located. He lay her down on the bank in such a way that her legs were in the water, then stripped off all his upper garments and got into the spring in just his hakama. It was conveniently shallow, and he knelt near her and lifted her left leg. The water had rinsed away most of the poison, which was a superficial paralytic type, and the blood had mostly washed off too, though it was still flowing, too much. At least now he could see exactly where the wounds were. He didn't want to have to do this any more than was necessary.

He licked up along one long gash. The bitter taste of the leftover poison stung his tongue. The second swipe, however, brought the taste of her blood. It tasted incredibly good. Pushing the feeling aside, he moved on to the next gash. He'd never tasted a human's blood before, let alone a young woman like this. All the demons who had tasted them said that young virgins tasted the best. Many demons sought out these women; not for the purpose of killing them, but rather to seduce them and prick them carefully with their fangs or claws so as to have a taste of their blood. The next morning, they would leave the woman, no longer a virgin and no longer desirable because it was virgin blood that tasted the best. A lot of hanyous came about in such a way.

The taste of Kagome's blood filled Sesshoumaru's senses. It was intoxicating. There was so much of it. He was vaguely aware of how aroused he was becoming, and thought it an odd reaction. Shouldn't the taste of blood make him hungry? Why this lust? He understood now why the others seduced young human virgins, tasted their blood in the process. It was like an aphrodisiac. He was panting like the dog he truly was by the time the last wound was sealed by his power. This was ridiculous. His body and his instincts insisted upon betraying him.

She was terribly pale. There was no way of telling whether he'd sealed the wounds in time to save her…if she'd lost too much blood, she might still die. He didn't know what else he could do to make her chances better. He'd never dealt with a person losing so much blood…demons rarely got in such situations. He pulled her from the water and covered her with both his upper garments, and set about making a fire. It would probably be best to keep her warm…It occurred to him that, had it been a demon who'd been injured, he would have caught an animal and drained its blood, given it to the wounded person to drink. He wondered what his chances were of getting the miko to wake up and actually drink blood…it seemed highly unlikely. Alternatively, he could pass blood into her mouth through his own, but he decided to save that thought as a last minute emergency plan. However, he did set about gathering roots and herbs and made a sort of medicinal tea, then caught a rabbit and added a little blood to the mixture too. Not enough to discolor the water and make her suspicious. She might be the miko, but he was fairly good with plants himself; his nose guided him, told him which plants were good for which conditions. Now, if only she would wake up long enough to drink…

At some point, he dozed off into dreams unlike any he'd ever had before; dreams of her body, of her blood on his tongue, of her moaning and writhing and…He woke up with a start when he heard a noise, relieved to have been awakened before his damnable dreams went any further. Her blood was in his system like a curse, weakening his will and tainting his sleep.

Wondering what had wakened him, he looked across the fire and saw that the miko had sat up slightly, weakly. She was shaking, still pale, but if she'd awakened, there was a fair chance she would pull through. He stood up and suddenly remembered he'd covered her with his upper garments. He was uncomfortably aware of the affect the dreams had had on him…but her eyes were glazed and feverish, and he decided she wasn't likely to notice, or, if she did, remember once the fever broke. He moved to the fire and scooped some of the tea into the cup, putting a finger in to test the warmth and finding it suitable.

"Here, miko, drink this."

"Sesshoumaru? What's going on?"

"Don't speak. You are weak and need to conserve your strength. Drink, and then go back to sleep."

He lifted her into a better sitting position and supported her while she drank. She grimaced at the taste, but did not complain, and drank it all. Carefully, he laid her down again and drew his clothing back over her. She was smiling up at him with a stupid, delirious smile.

"You're really gorgeous, you know that? You shouldn't ever wear clothes."

With that profound comment, she fell back asleep. It had been years since he'd laughed so hard. He practically doubled over, wheezing with the effort it took to keep quiet with laughter wracking his body. Finally, recovering but still chuckling, he looked up at the sky and discovered that the entire night had passed at some point, and dawn was creeping over the trees. He was fairly certain at this point that Kagome was going to make it. He was surprised at the feeling of lightening…of…relief…that moved through him. He was unaccustomed to worrying for the welfare of another, and to worry for a human…it was just another in a long line of firsts he had been experiencing lately.

It was midday when Kagome woke again. Having her wounds closed helped a great deal, and her miko power also seemed to speed the healing process. She walked a bit and said her leg was still a little numb, but he judged that by the next day, she would be ready to continue on their journey.

She watched him now with a worrisome affection in her pretty brown eyes. It made him nervous. He was aware that he was very good looking, and demonesses at both of his parents' castles were practically clambering for his virginity…but the idea of this frail human girl feeling anything for him was unnerving. Was she not attached to his brother in the future? Perhaps she truly was only a friend of the hanyou. But…knowing one day they would be at odds…that he would try to kill her…how could she feel that way about him?

And…knowing he would try to kill her one day, how was it that the feeling was mutual?


	8. Chapter 8

Kagome dove beneath the water and savored the way it moved through her messy hair, washing away the grime of the last few days. She stood and did her best to wash away dirt and blood with only her hands. She missed her soap and washcloths, but this was better than nothing. She could sense Sesshoumaru's aura, prowling around in the forest not far away, wild and feral. The aura of his dog form was interesting…natural.

She was becoming far too attached to this younger form of Sesshoumaru, with the changeable emotions and the dazzling smile. She kept having to remind herself that she must return to a time in which he hated her, in which he'd tried to kill her. But…it was all so confusing. He seemed to have come to a point of feeling at least _almost _friendly towards her. Would just that, that less than hateful emotion, change the future? What if he didn't try to kill her this time around? Would he still lose his arm to Tessaiga, which transformed when InuYasha desired to protect her from Sesshoumaru? What if she didn't need protecting? It could change the entirety of their future. Ought she to make him her enemy again? The idea hurt somehow. She wanted him to like her…or less than hate her, which was about as close as Sesshoumaru came to liking anyone.

This was all such a ridiculous, miserable situation. She was developing a _crush _on InuYasha's _brother_, for Pete's sake! He was so…different. And yet, so much the same. The way he'd tended to her when she'd been hurt the day before yesterday…he'd closed her wounds…she could only guess as to how, the thought that he might have been licking her legs was humiliating, knowing how unpleasant such a thing would be for him…And he'd covered her with his own clothes and made her medicine and tended to her so kindly…she could not help the growing affection for him. He had not acted as though she were stupid for getting injured. He had not criticized. Instead, he had actually commented that it was a good thing she'd managed to stab the cat with her arrow, that in doing so she had stopped it from harming her further and given him a chance to attack.

She got out of the water and dressed. The left leg of her hakama was ruined, but for the time being, the clothing would still serve its purpose, even though she felt ridiculous wearing pants with one leg cut off below the knee. Sesshoumaru kept giving her these funny smirking looks that assured her she looked silly. He came back some ten minutes later, and she was entranced by the wildness in his eyes, as if his soul was nothing but a wild dog at that moment. She watched the process, watched the feral look fade and the cool front slide into place.

"What happens if you don't do that?"

He cocked his head. She was surprised to see that his hair was down. Perhaps in the transformation, it came loose?

"Do what?"

"Pull yourself together like that. It's like, when you go hunting as a dog, some other side of you comes out. And when you return to this form, you grab it by the throat and stuff it into some cage inside your mind."

He chuckled quietly.

"An apt description. Remaining in a feral state would be dangerous. I become a creature of instinct…I could kill without thinking it through first, or do something else I might regret. So it is best that the dog lives only in the form of a dog."

He lifted a strand of his hair and considered it idly, then reached back and expertly divided it into three sections. Seeing a delightful opportunity, Kagome leapt down off the rock she'd been sitting on and practically begged.

"Let me do it! Please? You don't know how much girls in my time would pay to have hair like that, at least let me touch it!"

He smiled his laughing smile and perched on the rock she'd just abandoned.

"Go ahead, but if you do it messily, I'll undo it and braid it myself."

"Okay!"

She'd never thought she'd get a chance to do this. InuYasha's hair was like Sesshoumaru's, but he didn't tend to it, and it got snarled and tangly and full of splits and snares. Sesshoumaru's on the other hand, was clean and silky and completely wonderful. Strands of silver silk slipped through her fingers, and she forgot her main purpose, intent on simply enjoying the feel of all that lovely hair.

………

Did the miko have some strange perversion regarding hair? What on earth was she doing? She just stood there behind him, running her fingers through his hair in long strokes. Then she started getting more forward, her fingers sliding up and touching his scalp, rubbing just lightly before she seemed to remember what she was doing and moved away rather suddenly. Then her fingers touched the tips of his ears, and his eyes slid closed. Nobody had touched his ears since his mother, when he was just a pup. It felt good, too good.

"I'm always been curious about demon ears. Your brother has ears like a dog. Yours are like elf ears."

He was irritated by the slight hoarseness of his voice when he spoke.

"Elf?"

"Oh…well lessee, if we're seven hundred years back from my time…then, have you heard of Jesus?"

"The miracle-working human in the desert land far from here? I'm not sure whether or not the humans in this land are aware of him yet, but youkai know of him. He fought a different sort of demon…evil demons brought directly from hell. It's said he was the son of the God in that land."

"Yeah, him. Well, there's a holiday celebrating his birth, called Christmas. Over time though, a lot of other stories and traditions got mixed up with it too…now, we have this story about a guy named Santa Claus who goes around giving out presents to good kids on Christmas Eve. And supposedly, he has these funny little midget people called Elfs to build the presents for him. But there's another idea of Elves, as tall, beautiful, powerful creatures…I wonder if those stories came from youkai. You look like that version of an Elf. Either way…Santa's Elfs or the other version, they have pointed ears like yours."

"I see."

He didn't really have a clue of what on earth she was babbling about…his mind was a bit hazy. Those fingers tracing the outlines of his ears were melting his brain…and she'd said he was like these Elves…tall beautiful, powerful. He was well aware of his own attributes… but hearing her say that somehow made his heart thump. And he wasn't even in the mood to resist the feeling.

Finally, she stopped molesting his ears and moved back to his hair, parting it and braiding, slowly and carefully. At the end, he felt her hesitation. She fastened the braid with the short red ribbon he kept for the purpose, but then stood, with her hand still holding the braid, apparently unwilling to move away.

"Miko?"

"You're like you brother in a lot of ways. It took forever to get him to call me by name. Though at least you don't call me idiot or stupid or anything derogatory. Still, my name is Kagome; I wish you'd use it."

"Kagome." He said it slowly, sounding out the syllables, getting used to the sound of it on his tongue. "If my brother is so unkind to you, why do you stay with him?"

"I thought…no, I _do_ love him. As a friend, that is…there was more…but…there's someone else in his heart. And besides, I have something to atone for…you see, I messed up, I broke something important, and now I have to help set it straight."

"I see. Will this situation, you being here, likely change the future?"

"I hope not. I mean, a lot of bad things happened in the future…but it's possible that it might be worse if things don't happen exactly the same."

"So…I will attempt to kill you?"

"Yes…but saying that doesn't make it work! What if by knowing me, your strategy changes? What if this time, you actually succeed, or don't want to try at all, or try at the wrong time? My being here is going to change everything, I just know it."

"Unless we were to forget this happened."

"What do you mean?"

"Ryumaru…as I said, he's very skilled in magic. If he can send you back, perhaps it is best that he erase our memories of this time."

He was startled by the scent of her tears. Turning quickly, he found her looking at the ground. She'd finally let go of his hair.

"Kagome, what are you crying about?"

"Nothing. It's stupid."

"I will decide for myself what I think is stupid. Speak."

"You're just so…I dunno, you're almost nice. You don't hate me. But, if we forget, it'll go back to the way it was. You'll despise me as a human, try to kill me to hurt your brother. I won't remember what your hair feels like…"

Despite her honest sadness and the tears in her eyes, it was hard to keep from chuckling, just a little. Why the obsession over his hair? Still, in a way, he understood. There was no hiding the nature of the affection she felt for him, and touching his hair was the only true physical contact he had allowed her aside from when he was tending to her wounds. It was natural for an infatuated girl to desire memories she could hold on to. Disturbingly, he actually found that he too was going to regret losing those memories…the soft skin of her legs, the taste of her blood, her fingers in his hair, on his scalp, on his ears. It had been a long time since he'd touched anyone or been touched.

Kagome cried very quietly. Her tears were silent, sliding down her face; no sobs, no sniffles, just tears. He was puzzled by the unfamiliar rush of emotion her tears caused in him. He didn't like it, didn't like her sadness. He wanted…he wanted to comfort her.

He touched her like a man might pet a wild animal; appreciating its beauty and yet worried it might harm him somehow. Slowly, he took her chin between his thumb and fingers and tilted up her head, looking into her red lined eyes.

"I do not like to see you cry."

"I'm sorry…I just…I'm going to miss you, this you."

What madness possessed him then, to draw her towards him and brush her lips with his own? Kissing was not very common among demons; it was more of a human way of expressing affection…yet her lips were so soft and full and sensual…he for the first time understood the reason humans touched this way. She made a funny little surprised noise, and then she wrapped her hands around the back of his neck and kissed him back. The angle was somewhat awkward; he was sitting and she was standing, though he was tall enough that this didn't put any huge difference between their heights. Still, he stood and pulled her closer, suddenly overtaken by the urge to be closer, to touch her more. He savored the feel of her body against his, the surrender and willingness of her mouth.

Another first. So many things lately that he'd experienced for the first time. He'd never kissed before, and he tucked it away in his mind as something he ought to do with any other woman he ever shared an attraction with. She was a little clumsy, a little uncertain, and he gauged it to be her first kiss as well. Within a moment, he felt he'd gotten the hang of it, if the way she was making exciting little needy sounds was any indication.

After the initial exploration, the curiosity about this strange caress, he was shocked at how strong the lust was. His mind went cloudy, wiped nearly blank by the scent of her desire, the taste of her mouth, and the feel of her body. Something in the back of his mind was cackling evilly at him.

_Who likes the human girls now, huh? Hypocrite._

He was suddenly all too conscious of where this could go. He could take her, out here in the middle of the forest. Yet another first to add to all the others. Had he really fallen so far in such a short time, mere days, that he would not only touch a human, but allow his first experience with intimacy to be with one?

He wrenched himself away from her, forcing a tiny smile.

"It would be foolish to allow this to go any further, little miko."

Her lower lip trembled. It was swollen slightly from the force of his kiss. That feral part of him was acting up again, insisting he'd already marked her, in a sense, and must follow through.

"Do you think I'm ugly?"

He nearly rolled his eyes, but restrained himself, remembering her tears and not wanting to make them start again. Seriously, did she think he would kiss her that way if he thought she was ugly?

"No. Yet joining with each other would be exceedingly foolish. I did not mean to imply that it is an undesirable prospect."

"Can you please say something clearly for once? Do you…do you want me?"

He was silent for a long moment, then spoke in a hoarse voice just above a whisper.

"Yes."

A kind of gladness mixed with the longing in her eyes, and she sighed, turning away.

"Then I suppose that will have to be good enough. We should get going, right?"

"Hn."

He began walking.


	9. Chapter 9

**AN: I seem to compulsively use alliterations, lol. "…sending servants scurrying…" "…carefully cultivated coolness…", etc… weird…but fun! **

**Sorry for brief glitch where I reposted chapter 6 as chapter 9. **

"We should arrive at Ryumaru's home tomorrow."

"Oh."

No other response. There was a listless tone in Kagome's voice. She had been so quiet since yesterday. Sesshoumaru wondered, if he had gone ahead, kept kissing her, taken her…would it have made any difference today? Would she have been happy for having had such an experience? Would she have regretted it? Or would she have been made only more sad, more miserable at the idea of separating, of forgetting each other? It was best this way, he told himself, yet he could not seem to get the longing for her out of his head.

He despised himself for this weakness. He'd spent a hundred years feeling that humans were weak and, for most purposes, useless. And since Izayoi turned up, he'd hated them completely. Yet it only took about a week with this strange little priestess to change his mind, at least regarding her. She wasn't like the other humans he'd met. Perhaps it was simply a physical thing; the novelty of a human's beauty. Perhaps he ought to take her, to get the wanting out of his system. Yet he'd never known simple lust to be accompanied by this strange longing, this ache in his chest at the thought of bidding her farewell. He found himself thinking nonsense; almost hoping that Ryumaru could not send her back. He wanted more time, he wanted to know more about her. If the future were not in jeopardy over their mere acquaintance, perhaps he would have had the opportunity. As it stood, he must send her back, must forget she'd ever come. He felt that it was going to be lonely without her. Even if he allowed his memories to be erased, would he not still feel her absence, albeit without knowing why he felt lonely?

"Sesshoumaru."

He glanced up from where he was poking the fire with a stick.

"Yes?"

She stood and walked towards him, stood in front of him, then pushed his shoulders lightly. Curious, he allowed himself to do as she seemed to wish, and sat down, crossing his legs comfortably. She sat in his lap, surprising him, but he stayed still, wondering what her intentions were.

"I used to think of you as the bad guy. But…your brother isn't near so kind to me as you. I know he cares for me, even loves me as a friend…but he's so rough, so rude…and so thoughtless, always running off to see his lover behind my back, hurting me. I…I don't want to forget that you're really like this. But if I have to forget, then at least, give me something that won't be taken away. I…I must seem shameless. But I want you to be my first. Even if I don't remember. Please."

The sincerity in her voice proved to be his undoing. How could he resist such a heartfelt plea? He wanted it too, after all. He kissed her slowly, seeking clarity in his mind before this went any further. Yet there was no way clarity would come to him, not when there seemed to be thirty different voices screaming different opinions of this within his head. He cut them all off, made his decision. What would it hurt, if after tomorrow, neither of them could remember? Except…there was one thing.

He maneuvered them so that she lay on her back on the soft grass, and leaned over her. He pressed his nose against her belly and nuzzled softly, feeling her muscles tense and hearing her tiny giggle above him. So, she was ticklish. He smiled, finding it somehow adorable. He moved back up, bracing himself with his hands on either side of her head, kissing her again, savoring her body beneath his, the way she whimpered and clung.

"Kagome." It took a moment to get her to stop kissing him with the desperation of someone who knows they have only a little time. "Kagome, you're nearly fertile. It's unlikely…but you could possibly conceive. Are you certain you wish to take the risk?"

She grabbed his head in both her hands and pulled him back down, opening her mouth for him. After a long moment, she stopped long enough to speak.

"As long as it's unlikely…the risk is worth the reward. Please, Sesshoumaru…"

Whatever part of him might have resisted vanished. Though, somewhere far in the dark recesses of his blurry mind, that voice was still cackling.

_Hypocrite, hypocrite, hypocrite._

He would never have expected such intensity, such a loss of control. Always, no matter what the situation or the emotions it brought, he was able to maintain some sort of distance. Even in his fury over Father's idiocy, there was a part of him which remained calm, indifferent to the entire situation. Now…now, ever scrap of carefully cultivated coolness had disappeared, flown away.

The first time was a clumsy effort on both their parts; fumbling and for the most part uncomfortable, and yet somehow thrilling. The second time was so incredible that he wondered if another experience could ever beat it. They spent hours wrapped up in each other. Finally, when she fell into an exhausted sleep, he disentangled from her and moved away, trying to clear his head.

His emotions were whirling dangerously, frighteningly, jumping to conclusions he did not wish to consider. Was it simply that one's first time brought a rush of sentiment, a natural attachment to the person who had introduced one to this wonderful aspect of life? Perhaps that was part of it…but this ache was not new; it had intensified with their lovemaking, but it had already been present before.

Standing in the forest, looking down at the young woman wrapped up in his haori, he thought he finally understood what drove Father.

Though he could not say he felt it, not quite, he understood now what love meant.


	10. Chapter 10

**AN: I realized after I posted it that the phrase "the risk is worth the reward" in chapter nine should probably be "the reward is worth the risk"…I think…I've kinda confused myself, lol.**

**I'm a bit torn as to where this should go from here. I thought about making it a canon ending; Kagome goes on the marry InuYasha and then I might match Sesshy up with older Rin…or I could diverge from the main plot and write a Sess/Kag ending. Feel free to give me your input! **

**Oh, and thank you all for the awesome reviews! It's not my habit to respond to each review separately, but I want you all to know I do appreciate your kindness hugely! :D :D :D *Bear hugs for everybody!* **

"Here, miko, have some rice."

"Oh! It's been a long time since I've had anything but meat! Thank you!"

"You're certainly welcome. Sesshoumaru, might I speak with you separately for a moment?"

"Hn."

Sesshoumaru followed Ryumaru out of the small house, leaving Kagome eating like a starved person.

"You have joined with the female."

"I hardly see how that is any of your concern."

"It is dangerous to do anything that could change the future. Chances are, it will not harm anything…but if she has conceived, I don't know what might happen. Perhaps the child might die in the time travel. But if not…how do you expect her to explain to your brother in the future how it is that she came to be pregnant with a hanyou who carries your scent?"

Inwardly, Sesshoumaru cursed. He'd felt that he'd thought it all through…but he hadn't considered that, that the hanyou who was his brother would recognize his scent. He did not think there was any chance that Kagome had conceived, though it was too soon for even _his_ senses to tell…but still, he must send her out to bathe thoroughly before returning her to the other time, lest the hanyou react badly.

"I had not thought of that. Are you truly able to send her back?"

"Yes, I think. Though, what puzzles me is what caused the portal to act to strangely. If someone has laid a curse upon it, I may or may not be able to send her back. However, I do have a way to ensure that, if either of the other times she comes from reject her, she will come back here and not be lost to some time she does not know. That's the best I can do, I'm afraid."

"Well enough. I'm going to send her out to bathe. Do you have a way of getting the blood out of her old clothing? I think it best that I send her back looking the way she did when she came."

"I think I can do that. Sesshoumaru…are you attached to this human?"

Sesshoumaru glared at the older demon. Among Father's strange, often elderly cohorts, Ryumaru was reasonably sane. He was tall and dignified, with long white hair and a matching beard, always wearing long robes and a cloak. He had eccentricities…all of Father's friends did…but he also was very intelligent and very good…_too_ good…at reading emotion. Denying anything true would not fool those keen eyes.

"It does not matter. I will send her back where she belongs, and I will forget she ever came. One day, I will meet her again…and she will be my enemy. That is the way things must be."

"You're right, that _is_ the way things must be. But, though I can make the mind forget, memories of the heart remain. Are you prepared to feel her loss, not knowing from whence the pain stems?"

"I have no choice."

"You impress me, Sesshoumaru. You are hardly more than a pup; most at your age, in this situation, would be completely lovesick, weeping and wailing at the thought of losing their lover. You cannot fool me into thinking some part of you does not feel that way, but your restraint over it is worthy of regard."

Suddenly, though he would never admit it in such terms, Sesshoumaru very much wanted to confide in someone older and wiser.

"I…had not intended to feel anything for her."

"Ha, of course you didn't! Wouldn't be true emotion if it was planned! That's how love works, boy!"

Sesshoumaru growled low.

"I did not say I love her. Only that I feel some affection for her."

"Right, right. Whatever you want to call it. Well, it hardly matters, does it? You have to let her go either way. Who knows, maybe one day you'll have another chance. Or maybe not. Either way, feeling this way will do you good in the end. Even without the memories, your heart will be softer towards humans now. Perhaps you will find it in yourself to make things right with your father. He's heartbroken over your leaving, you know."

"Father has nothing to do with this. You say that these feelings will remain even with my memories of this time gone. Is there some way to be rid of this emotion?"

"Time, I suppose, will make it fade. After I have sent the miko back and erased your memory, I will give you some vague explanation as to why you feel bereft, so that you will not be entirely confused. After that, we will all simply sit back and hope for the best…hope that the future stays on its correct course."

"Yes."

He already felt bereft, and hated himself for it. Such nonsense, this sentimentality. He walked back into the house, ignoring Ryumaru's eyes following him.

"Kagome, go wash. It would not be wise to return to my brother bearing my scent. There's a spring behind the house." She nodded, rising and setting her empty bowl aside. "Ryumaru is going to see about getting the stains out of your clothing. It's best to send you back the way you came…especially since you will have no explanation, no memory of why or where you were gone."

"Sesshoumaru…I'm going to miss you so much…miss knowing this side of you, that is…"

"We will meet in the future. You have implied that I will stop actively trying to kill you at some point, correct?"

"Yes…but…we won't ever be like this again will we?…Even if we get to be allies someday…it won't be like this…."

"I think it unlikely. My brother will be a barrier between us. I would not be surprised, if one day he recognizes his own stupidity and realizes what a wonder he has in you. He will claim you for himself, then. And you will never remember that you ever felt anything for me."

Tears filled her eyes.

"A…a wonder? Me?"

At this point, was there any purpose to denying anything, to resisting emotion, to being cold? He'd already come to care about her. He'd kissed her, made love with her. He'd found her to be the best example of her race he'd ever met. And in a few short hours, he would forget she'd ever existed. So really, why not be honest now?

"No human less than wonderful could make me feel this way."

He half expected some silly declaration of undying love for him then. He should have thought better of her; she was smarter than that. Love could be born in a week perhaps, but not matured. Whatever they might have had was a seedling which would never grow into a tree. She knew it too. Instead of professing love, she simply wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him.

How could so much sadness be conveyed in such a gesture? He had wondered, last night, if this sort of touch could only bring lust. Now he knew better. It was like a fusing together of their desires, their affections, their sorrows. Through it, they were able to communicate how they felt; this emotion so far beyond mere affection, and yet not quite love.

When finally they moved apart, she took his hands. There was a sad look on her face as she laced her fingers with those of his left hand.

"Thank you so much, Sesshoumaru…for everything. And…I'm sorry, for what will happen to you because of me."

He chose not to ask what she meant. It would do little good anyway.

………

"Step into the circle please, young lady."

Kagome stepped into the circle drawn on the floor. Ryumaru was holding a long staff covered with strange designs. Sesshoumaru stood in the shadows behind the older demon, sad golden eyes watching everything.

"Now listen. I believe someone cursed the Well to send you to another time…an effort to get rid of you, I suppose."

Her eyes widened slightly. _Naraku! _

"I think I know who."

"Well, that's not particularly relevant; and the less you tell me of that future, the better. The trouble is this; if the Well was cursed only to send you to another time on the assumption that you would never find your way back, then everything will likely work out. If, however, the person who laid the curse took all possible precautions, there may be another curse, blocking your return. In that case, you would simply return here, and we will be unable to do anything about how this may change the future."

"Oh. Um, if it works, which time are you sending me to?"

"Your own birth time. It is best there. You may be unconscious for a while, and your era seems safer than that two hundred years from now. You will not be attacked while you sleep."

"Okay."

"Are you ready to leave?"

She looked over Ryumaru's shoulder to Sesshoumaru. He gave her that dazzling smile, one last time…though it seemed a little weak, lacking in sincerity. His eyes bid her a sad farewell, and he nodded once.

"I'm ready."

Light flashed around her.


	11. IMPORTANT AUTHOR'S NOTE

**Author's Note:**

**I know we're not supposed to use whole chapters for Author's Notes…So, just for the sake of obeying rules, I've included a tiny drabble in here, unrelated to "In Another Time." But the Author's Note is the important part.**

**My muse ran away, and this story came to a screeching halt. I forced myself forward, but the four children (chapters) born of this mind-rape were ugly and disfigured things, lol. So, I took them down, and I'm giving them all a makeover…well actually, probably a complete rewrite. **

**I didn't want to make Kagome pregnant, but I went with it because I ran into a wall…now I'll probably be taking it back out again. Consider this story on a (hopefully very brief) hiatus. It's back down to 10 chapters, and I'll pick it up from there eventually. **

**A billion thanks to all the wonderful reviewers! I'm delighted by all the awesome reviews I'm getting, and so I want to make the rest of this story worthy of them, even if it takes a while! Please be patient! Thank you all!**

**~WindAndWaterAlchemist**

**Random Stupid Drabble:**

Kagome hesitated as she looked down her arrow at Sesshoumaru, who stood over InuYasha's fallen body menacingly. She should fire…she'd taken careful aim and was fairly certain she'd hit her target…but…

Shippo's voice was frantic.

"C'mon, Kagome, shoot him before he hurts InuYasha!"

"I will, I will. It's just…"

"Just what?! Just what?!"

Sesshoumaru was looking right at her, waiting for her to let the arrow loose. She whispered, more to herself than to Shippo.

"It's just that he's so good-looking!"

Sesshoumaru smirked, his powerful ears picking up the conversation, and then smoothly turned and walked away, long hair swishing softly behind him. Kagome gaped after him for a long moment before she ran to InuYasha's side.


	12. Chapter 11

**AN: Here's a new idea. If I hate it, I may yet again rip it down, lol. I don't know how well these two chapters (11&12) match up with the feel of the earlier chapters, but I certainly enjoyed writing them more than the chapters I took down, so it's an improvement at least, I hope. **

Kagome woke in the bottom of Well. Her head ached and she felt dizzy. Had she fallen from the top? She looked up at the top of the shaft, hoping InuYasha was nearby.

"InuYasha?"

Kagome got the shock of her life when a small silver, dog-eared head popped over the edge.

"Who said my name? Who're you?"

She could do nothing more than gape helplessly up at the child above. She considered fainting but decided it was a useless course of action. Remaining silent, she wracked her brain, trying to determine what had happened. The last thing she could remember was jumping down the Well in her own time…why did it feel so long ago? And why did she suddenly feel like crying? And _why on earth _was there a miniature InuYasha looking down the Well at her?! She decided she must be dreaming. It was the only thing that made any sense. She must have lost her footing and fallen down the Well, hit her head, and now she was dreaming.

"Hey, human! Don't ignore me, wench! Who are you? How do you know my name?"

It was all just a dream, she assured herself. And this little InuYasha was adorable, even if he still had the same attitude. Amused, she stood on somewhat wobbly legs and climbed up the familiar wall of the Well, clambering over the side.

"This is my dream, so shouldn't you know who I am?"

He stared at her with an expression that clearly said she was insane. Suddenly, she was frightened by his appearance. His clothing was torn. There were bloody scratches on his face and hands, and his hair had matted brown-ish places…marks that looked suspiciously like dried blood. He looked no older than ten years of age, just a child. There was a chunk missing from his left ear, like something had taken a bite out of it, and he held his right arm at an odd angle that implied it was broken and had yet to heal. Somehow, this didn't seem like the sort of thing she would dream. A shiver of fear crawled up her spine. What if…what if this was not a dream?

"InuYasha, what happened to you?!"

"Who are you and why do you know my name?"

What if…what if the well had done something wrong, had sent her to another time?

"My name is Kagome. It's not important how I know you. Are you alright?"

The child shied away from her when she reached a hand out to him. She suddenly felt a chilling certainty that this was real. Somehow, she was in InuYasha's past. And knowing that this was how his past had been made her ache inside.

"Please, InuYasha, tell me what happened."

He bared his fangs and growled at her like a wild dog when she tried to touch him again. Then, when she stepped away and made no further attempts to reach out to him, he crossed his arms over his chest and shrugged.

"It's no big deal. I went too close to the castle and the guards beat me up. Brother ordered them to, I guess."

Those words made Kagome shiver. Sesshoumaru had ordered his guards to beat this innocent child? She took a moment to ponder why exactly that surprised her so much. She'd seen Sesshoumaru to be powerful and at times cruel, and she knew he hated InuYasha. Why had she expected better of him? It wasn't as though she had any cause to think of him as kind…

She shouldn't be here. No matter how it had come about that she ended up in this past time, this was _not _where she was meant to be. She needed to get back. She turned and leapt back into the Well. There was no flash of light, no surge of power. Nothing. Only a curious hanyou boy peering over the ledge of the Well and grinning in the way any child may be tempted to grin at a crazy person.

She climbed back out of the Well, feeling panicked. And why on earth was this causing déjà vu? Perhaps, rather than a dream, it was a recurring nightmare? It would make sense, she supposed, that she might have a subconscious fear of the Well taking her someplace else, and that this fear might come forth in sleep. She shook her head to clear it. She could handle this. She'd handled the first time she was sucked into another time, on her birthday. She would take this in stride as well. There was nothing else to do.

"InuYasha, I need your help."

"Keh! Why should I help you, wench? I don't have time, I have to go. He'll be after me probably."

"Who?"

"Brother. He'll be mad that I stole food from the castle, and he'll come after me. I gotta get outta here."

He didn't look afraid. He looked more like a boy trying to escape a lecture from his father than a child trying to avoid a beating at the hands of his heartless brother. The lack of fear was actually a relief. Perhaps, abusive guards or not, Sesshoumaru himself had too much honor to harm a child. Kagome watched the child run away, and was somehow relieved to see him go. She hated seeing him that way, all battered and bruised. She'd known his childhood was awful…but seeing it in person, knowing she could do nothing about it for fear of altering the course of the future…it made her hurt inside. She hoped he would be okay.

She hoped she would be okay too, trapped in this other time.


	13. Chapter 12

**AN: A couple of people mentioned that those who reviewed the chapters I took down are now unable to review these two chapters. If you are in this situation and you really want to review, try reviewing while signed out (I allow anonymous reviews) or send me a private message. But that's only if you really want to review, no problem if you don't. **

**Also, I AM aware that Ryumaru said she wouldn't get trapped in some other time, but she did…and I'm going to explain it…eventually, lol.**

Unsure of what to do, Kagome slumped down with her back against the Well and wracked her brain for solutions. The Well would not take her back. Why? She had a suspicion Naraku had done something to it…why did that thought jump so easily to mind? She was conscious of a very dull ache between her thighs and wondered how she'd managed to hurt herself there. Fallen on a rock at an odd angle? That seemed rather absurd, but she pushed the thought away, concerned with more important things. She could go and see if the village was built, ask for help there…but she thought it best to avoid people, worried about the possibility of changing the future. She stared down at her hands in her lap, suddenly noticing what looked like dirt beneath her fingernails, as if she'd driven her hands into soil for some reason.

"Human, what are you doing in this place?"

She jolted at the familiar voice and her head jerked up to look at the youkai standing before her. Sesshoumaru? She was startled by his appearance, his long hair apparently pulled back in a long tail or braid, she couldn't see which; a small but intricately worked gold circlet wrapped around his head, his clothing even more extravagant than usual, embroidered with gold thread along his family crests, his fur nowhere to be seen and his armor polished to shine almost blindingly. He looked like a king.

"Sesshoumaru?"

He blinked at that, and seemed to study her more carefully where before he'd only given her a perfunctory glance. His handsome head tilted to one side and his hair swished forward, revealing that it was in a braid, not a ponytail.

"You seem familiar, human. Have you crossed my path before? How is it that you know my name?"

That was odd. She shouldn't have let his name slip out, now she would have to explain herself. But while it made perfect sense for her to know him, why did he find her familiar? And why did he suddenly strike her as even more beautiful than usual? Was it the extra elegance of his clothing? It didn't seem that way.

"Uh, no, we haven't met before…I just…um…I met a kid a minute ago who said his brother Sesshoumaru was coming after him, and you look like the boy sort of, so I just guessed."

A strange expression came over his features, something not entirely unlike concern.

"Was he badly injured, the child?"

"Well, he didn't look good…but he's a hanyou, he'll heal quickly. He seemed pretty cheerful."

"How do you know he is a hanyou? Why are you not afraid of him, or me? I could kill you with one thought."

That aroused her fighting spirit, and she glared up at him.

"I'm not completely defenseless! I'm a miko!"

A little smirk tilted up the corners of his mouth.

"You think you could do me harm, little miko?"

It was with those words that it hit; a rush of something like déjà vu, except more powerful, like real memories, flashing through her mind too fast to be caught, brief glimpses. _A beautiful, fanged smile. Silky silver hair beneath her fingers. A warm, powerful body above hers._ She stood staring at him with her mouth just the tiniest bit open, wondering where on earth that had come from. And he was starting back at her with eyes that looked slightly wide, as if he too were in the grip of this strange experience.

………

Sesshoumaru was quick to kill the two guards who had assaulted InuYasha. He'd told his minions over and over that InuYasha was not to be harmed; but they never listened, always harming the child when he snuck onto the castle grounds, weak and hungry. Sesshoumaru hated the hanyou; or rather, he hated the hanyou's existence, hated what he represented. His father's weakness, a black mark upon their family. Towards InuYasha as a person, Sesshoumaru had little or no feeling. But he would not allow a mere child to be harmed by his men; it was dishonorable. When InuYasha came to manhood, then Sesshoumaru would deal with the blight himself. Before that, none were to touch him.

He followed InuYasha with the intent of delivering some cruel speech reminding the hanyou of his place and making him feel low while actually assuring himself of his brother's relative health. He fully intended that InuYasha would grow to adulthood healthy and strong, a worthy opponent who there would be no dishonor in killing.

He'd been puzzled to find a human girl leaning against Ryumaru's Well. Dug two years ago to give the humans a place to dispose of the bones of evil demons, the Well was a strange place, rumored to have strange powers. Considering it was Ryumaru, who knew what strange and likely absurd power it might be bestowed with? Ryumaru was wise, but eccentric. In general, the humans avoided the place except when dumping bones, nervous about the power lurking here. So why was this young human woman sitting in this place where most of her race would fear to tread?

She was strange, calling him by name and talking about InuYasha as if he were normal, not an abomination. Most humans would agree with Sesshoumaru's estimation of InuYasha, so why was this girl different? Why wasn't she afraid of either Sesshoumaru or InuYasha? And why was she so familiar somehow?

"I'm not completely defenseless! I'm a miko!"

Her insolence amused him. Strange human: here he stood, a youkai lord in all his finery; he would surely have intimidated even the most stalwart of human samurai, yet this strange woman was nearly threatening him.

"You think you could do me harm, little miko?"

Those words…he felt with a sudden shock of complete surety that _he had said them before_. And then there were suddenly memories that did not exist flashing before his mind's eye. _An annoyed finger poking him in the chest. Sweet blood on his tongue. A soft, writhing body pinned beneath him._

The way she was gaping at him…had she seen something too? Suddenly, he was as close to frightened as he'd ever been. He knew there was a blank in his memory, Ryumaru had told him that it had been necessary to wipe about a week from his memory, for some reason he would not explain. He knew it had something to do with a young woman, someone he had cared for, one way or another, which explained the strange loneliness he'd felt after that time. But…that had been fifteen years ago. There was no way this could be the woman he'd lost; she would have been much older by now. He knew the woman had been human, Ryumaru had told him so with a mocking smirk. It annoyed him greatly, Ryumaru's hints and insinuations, never clear answers. Still, knowing the woman had been human, he knew it could not be this girl, who looked as if she would have only been a baby at that time. So what were these strange memories? Was she similar to the girl he could not remember?

Pretending nothing had happened, he spoke.

"Why are you here? Are you performing some sort of miko ritual upon the Well? I would advise against it, your powers may tamper with the youkai magic of this place."

"No…I just…I'm lost."

He studied her. She was oddly garbed; extremely so, in fact. Her legs were almost completely bare, and her top garment was oddly designed. And it all seemed so familiar that it was profoundly disturbing…

In an uncharacteristically charitable gesture, he made an offer.

"Tell me where you need to go, and I will direct you towards it."

She was silent for a moment, chewing on her pretty bottom lip.

"I…I need to go to the future."


	14. Chapter 13

**AN: Okay, so just to clarify, when Ryumaru sent Kagome back, she was supposed to end up either in her time, or go back to the time she'd spent with Sesshoumaru, so as not to get lost in some time where she wouldn't have anyone to help her. However, something went wrong, and she went just fifteen years into the future from her time with Sesshoumaru. InuYasha is about fifteen, but looks ten because he's a half-demon. Sesshoumaru would then be about 115-ish. He's garbed up all fancy with the crown thing and stuff because at this point, he's become a lord, and he's residing in the castle rather than just wandering around, so he has to dress the part. The Well has been dug by this time, but still refuses to transport Kagome. I will explain all of this with time, once I figure it out myself, lol. As somebody mentioned, considering all of Sesshoumaru's father's other friends (Totosai, Myouga, etc), is it really surprising that Ryumaru would mess up? Lol. **

It was evident at this point that the woman was mad. In Sesshoumaru's experience, madness often coincided with strange talents or powers, so perhaps the insane miko had been able to channel his erased memories briefly, which might explain those odd flashes of unknown images. What on earth was wrong with her mind? Sitting in a place most humans would fear, garbed so strangely and immodestly, speaking without worry to a hanyou and a great demon lord, calling him by name without title, and saying she needed to go to the future? Mad as a mating hare, evidently. He decided to ignore the last thing she'd said.

"What village do you come from, miko? The one nearby, or another further away?"

"Well…sort of here, I suppose. I come from the city that will be here someday."

Perhaps she was in some sort of religious trance? Attempting to see the future? She did not even seem aware of the absurdity of her words. Curious, though…her eyes appeared to be clear and at least reasonably intelligent. She didn't look dazed or confused.

"Miko, I will leave you here if you can not give me a plain answer, pertaining to this time and this world."

She stood up finally…he was amazed by her lack of respect, remaining sitting in his presence all this time when it would have been more proper to stand and bow…and she put her hands on her hips and gave him a look just short of a glare.

"I _am _giving you a clear answer! Why is it so unbelievable? The world is full of magic! I came from the future. I live in a time a long way from here, probably like seven hundred years, but I travel through this Well to a time closer to this, where I've met you before! Something must have gone wrong, and now I'm stuck here, and I don't know how to get back, but if I stay here, it could interfere with the future!"

He took a moment to absorb her words, and decided it was worth considering. She was dressed very oddly, and hardly seemed to belong here; a young human woman from this time would most likely have either run screaming from him or otherwise groveled desperately in an attempt to divert death. There were other strange things about her as well, her knowledge of his name, for example. InuYasha was unlikely to have become so friendly with her within moments as to tell her his brother's name. In fact, InuYasha wasn't likely to say much of anything at all to a strange human girl; the child was nervous and shy. A pang of unwanted guilt reminded Sesshoumaru that the boy was nervous in part because he'd so often been beaten by Sesshoumaru's own men.

He was puzzled by the woman's scent. She smelled like nothing, really, as though she and her clothes had just been thoroughly scrubbed, almost as though she intended to hide something from someone not unlike himself, someone with a powerful nose. Was it possible she was a demon's woman, had betrayed him, and was attempting to hide it? Not likely, with a miko.

He chose to accept her far-fetched tale, for the moment. She was right, there were an infinite number of possible uses for magic in the world, and the idea of someone somehow coming from the future was unlikely, but not impossible.

"Come with me, woman. I wish to question you further."

She eyed him nervously, apparently finally registering the danger she was in simply by being in his presence.

"Are you going to try to kill me or anything?"

The way she asked struck him as funny somehow. She hardly looked frightened; a bit nervous, but far from terrified. There was more of an accusatory tone in her voice than a plea for mercy, as if she were scolding him for even considering trying to kill her…though actually, he hadn't truly considered it. Why should he kill her? She was strange, but in more of an intriguing way than an irritating one. Sesshoumaru did not kill without cause.

"I will not harm you, unless you intend to challenge me. Now come. I wish to speak with you, but this is not the right place, the humans would be frightened if they caught sight of me."

She bit her lip, apparently thinking, but then brushed grass from her clothing and moved to follow him. He was pleased by her cooperation, for if she'd refused him, he thought with an inward, self-mocking smirk, the curiosity about this odd human might very well have driven him mad.


End file.
